Can a 16 year old leave home without consent after they leave school?

Answer 1

Yes, any adult who allows an absentee minor to reside in their home, knowing that it is against the wishes of the minor's parents or guardian is subject to prosecution under the criminal statutes of the state of residency. If a minor allows a friend who is also a minor to stay in their home, the adult(s) have the obligation to notify the parents and if the parents object the minor must be returned to parental custody, by whatever means necessary.

Answer 2

If a teenager under the age of 18 wishes to leave home, whether or not they are still in school is irrelevant. Laws concerning emancipation of a minor differ from state to state. However, usually a minor must get the consent of his or her parent or legal guardian before filing the paperwork to be emancipated. In cases where consent is not given, the child may sue for emancipation through the courts. However, this is almost always reserved for cases of child abuse or endangerment.

Answer 3

No...at eighteen you are legally an adult and can leave anytime you want. On the other hand, your parents are no longer legally required to support you either. They can boot you out the door anytime they like with no legal problems. The ideal situation would be for both of you to reach a mutually agreeable decision (you get a little and you give a little) so you can both be happy.

Answer 4

The custodial parent has a few options:

• Call law enforcement, report the child as missing and where he or she may be. The police will return the child to the custodial parent's home. If it happens often enough, the child may be integrated into the juvenile justice system as a chronic runaway and placed in foster care, a state agency or juvenile facility until they reach the age of majority in the state where they live
• File an action in court against the non-custodial parent if he or she does not voluntarily return the child. This could spell very bad news for the non-custodial parent as some states interpret such an action as kidnapping even if the non-custodial parent doesn't remove the child from their legal home.

It would be much better for all parties involved for the minor child to write to the judge with jurisdiction over the custody case making their wishes known. The older the child, the more weight will be given to their wishes and the judge may grant a modification to custody based on the same as long as the non-custodial parent can provide a safe and non-abusive environment for the child as well as meeting their basic financial needs.

Answer 5

A lot of problems is what happens. The slighted parent can call the police to have the minor returned, the other parent can be in trouble for allowing the minor to move in when it is a violation of the custody order and the two parents start a fight over the whole thing.